TOXIC SHARK (2017)

TOXIC SHARK (2017)

Tagline: This vacation really bites.

(Adventure, Action, Unicorn Shark) [PG-13]

Note: This movie wasn’t given an MPAA rating, but I think some of the language would have had it getting a PG-13.

It was all those years of polluting the ocean, it’s come back to bite us…literally.

In this one, we are taken to a tropical singles island retreat. It doesn’t take long before it’s discovered that some of the staff is missing. A toxic shark is terrorizing the shoreline and has the ability to spray a toxic acid that gives its victims a disease that is basically rabies. That is if they don’t die by getting eaten before it gets a chance to develop. 

First off, this movie first appeared on the SYFY Channel, but it wasn’t made by them. It was made by a now-defunct studio called 4 Mile Productions along with MarVista Entertainment. MarVista hasn’t done a ton of well-known movies, but they were involved in the 007 movie SPECTRE. 

What was good about this one is the soundtrack. I actually pretty much loved the soundtrack for this thing, it’s definitely one of the better outings in that regard when it comes to shark flicks. I did like some of the dialog in the movie. It actually felt natural and resembled real conversations that might actually take place. It doesn’t feel as canned as some of the other genre scripts out there. The other thing that is actually pretty solid about this movie is the effects. The shark looks menacing and toxic which is exactly what you would expect. Once you have seen a really bad group of shark movies where the CGI is just really crappy, you can tell when at least a little effort is being put in. I also liked that we had a duel threat here with both the shark and the people infected by it. 

Acting wise it was nice to see Kabby Borders again. She plays Eden in this movie and you can tell pretty quickly they decided to lean on her a lot for the human storyline here. Borders was also in the really fun shark flick DAM SHARKS. Michelle Cortés is good as Erin. She was also in 5 HEADED SHARK ATTACK, so of the 4 movies she’s acted in, 2 of them were shark films. I also liked Quinn Bozza as Jesse, but don’t get excited if you are a fan of his. He doesn’t get a ton of screen time where he is of “the right mind”. 

If I have any complaints about this movie, it’s the amazingly stupid decisions of the characters. However, if the characters made smart decisions, we probably wouldn’t have a movie. Outside of Eden and Sam (played by Bryce Durfee) we also don’t really get many likable characters or enough backstory to care about them. It does seem a bit odd that Eden would just happen to know all the things she knows, but maybe she studied water toxicity and rabies in college while everyone else was taking classes that don’t help you in life or in a shark movie. I also think it could have used a better ending. This thing feels like it was written to set up a part 2 they decided to not make, or never really intended to do. 

Overall there is too little in the script to get me to care about these characters even when I like a couple. In light of that though, as a shark movie, this one is pretty solid and there are plenty of shark attacks which is always a plus in a shark movie.

I didn’t get my mind blown even when just looking at the “sharkverse” of movies, so this lands at a 5 out of 7. It is better than a very large batch of shark movies though, so if you are doing a marathon, you might want to throw this one in.

GRAPHICS ARE THE PROPERTY OF THE ASYLUM AND ARE USED FOR REVIEW PURPOSES ONLY. 

Please check out the link below by clicking on the picture. Because no one should die buttonless.